Chalk it up to karmic retribution.

The Recording Industry Association of America recently subpoenaed more than 900 music fans for “illegally” sharing files over the Internet. If they added six to seven zeros to that number, they may begin to hedge the number of citizens “illegally” co-opting music for personal use.

To the record company, this brand of “piracy” is career threatening but the vast majority of music fans won’t even bat an eye toward the industry’s supposed plight.

For far too long record labels have insisted on bilking the consumer, cheating artists out of royalties and underestimating the audience responsible for everything record companies own. Fans have been taking it from behind, courtesy of record labels, for years and now that the roles are reversed, consumers are bearing the brunt of the complaints.

I realize the recording industry is up-in-arms about plummeting revenues, market instability and subsequent job insecurity, but to solely blame music fans for the industry’s woes is short-sighted at best. It’s a cop-out of the most despicable kind.

They blame file sharing while I blame quality, price and the artists themselves.

The record labels aren’t the only ones to blame. Many bands have been trumpeting the virtues of copyright laws long before the rest of the industry, but their cries of foul have rung hollow until now.

I find it rather ironic so many bands are quick to condemn music fans for “illegally” procuring music when genres like metal, hardcore and punk owe much of their current popularity to the tape-trading boom of the ’80s and fans who would “illegally” tape concerts and make copies.

If fans want to support an artist, see the group live rather than buy a record-the musicians will make much more that way. And if bands want to keep their fans, condemning file sharing repels many more devotees than selling inexpensive singles or simply putting out consistently good music would.

If record companies want to keep fans coming back, how about better quality control or competitive prices. When the cost of producing CDs continues to drop and retail prices soar, it doesn’t take a genius to realize why a backlash has crippled the industry.

But it’s not only whimpering labels and crybaby artists championing the RIAA, there are many normal people acting under the guise of ethical righteousness. But copyright infringement and other illegalities can be found where you least expect.

Many Eastern professors have a habit of showing news clips in class that have been taped from television, this despite the fact networks sell tapes of these shows for a whopping $30. But if you can tape it for free why not do it, right? And while this example may fall under “fair use” for the purposes of education, if record buyers can’t become “informed consumers” before making a purchase, how fair is fair use?

And labels conveniently neglect to mention the benefits of file sharing when it comes to discovering new bands or listening to a record before buying it to ensure quality.

From a strictly legal standpoint file sharing may be condemned, but it is the ethical equivalent to jay walking, loitering or driving five miles over the speed limit on a busy freeway. Illegal? Yes. Worth filing charges for? No.

If the RIAA or musicians want sympathy from consumers, they will be sorely disappointed. For far too long record executives and musicians have gravely underestimated the audience to whom they cater, and programs like Napster and Kazaa were merely the return-fire many music fans have been waiting for.

The choice between overpaying for someone’s “art” on the whim of a conglomerate or the freedom to find new music without crippling costs and then make an educated decision isn’t much of a choice at all.

File sharing may be illegal according to copyright laws, but it also shines light on the glaring errors in judgment by record companies world wide. The record industry can continue to fight inane lawsuits against music fans who have no hope of paying the fines levied against them, or they can stop alienating the audience paying their bills and compromise.

Sadly, most executives will be homeless before they find this obvious answer.